Various types of joint support are widely available on the market, such as, for example:                thumb splints: indicated for dislocations, strains and fractures of the thumb or also for lesions of the thumb ligament in sports injuries;        wrist splints: indicated for dislocations and sprains of the wrist and for carpal tunnel syndrome;        wrist braces: indicated for dislocations, slight lesions and small injuries of the wrist;        epicondylitis straps: indicated for radial and/or medial epicondylitis and tendinitis of the elbow;        corsets: indicated for mild spinal injuries;        thigh braces: indicated for contractures, pulls and sprains of the quadriceps muscle;        knee braces: indicated for injuries of the knee joints;        ankle braces: particularly indicated in control of ankle eversion and inversion of the ankle; and        elastic ankle supports: indicated after mild tibio-tarsal injuries.        
These joint supports generally include a main strap designed to surround the part of the body in which the joint to be protected is situated. This main strap is made of multilayer material comprising:                a bottom layer, of anallegic material, destined to come into contact with the skin of the wearer,        a top layer of material suitable for Velcro-type fastening (mutually engageable hooks and loops), and        an intermediate layer of padding consisting of a soft, breathable material.        
The bottom and top layers are edged and sewn along the whole perimeter of the main band so as to enclose the padding on their inside.
Pockets are sewn onto the top layer possibly to contain metal stiffening plates.
At one end of the main band a plurality of eyelets are created by cutting. At the other end of the main band a plurality of laces are sewn which are inserted into the respective eyelets so as to close the strap in a tubular shape.
Velcro type fastening elements consisting of a plurality of hooks able to engage with the hooked wires of the upper layer of the main strap are sewn to the free end of the main strap.
In this manner, by pulling the laces, the strap is suitably tightened around the part of the body on which it is applied and exerts an adequate pressure on the joints which are protected and immobilised. Once the desired pressure has been reached, the Velcro fastening element is applied to the top layer of the strap to keep it closed and suitably tightened.
The production procedure for these products is somewhat long, complex and costly because of the various operations of edging and sewing to which both the strap and the laces are subjected.
Furthermore, the product obtained presents some drawbacks. In fact it often happens that the laces come into direct contact with the skin, resulting in skin irritations due to the production material of the laces. As a result a further additional element must be provided in the support, in the form of a protective sock, which is sewn to the main strap so as to be interposed between the laces and the wearer's skin.
Furthermore, in the joint supports of the prior art, it is necessary to design the length of the laces to ensure that, when the support is suitably tightened, the Velcro fastening element is situated on the strap and not on the laces on which it has no grip. As a result, joint supports of the prior art are not very versatile and do not adapt well to the different sizes and shapes of the parts of the body to be protected.